An analysis and evaluation by the State of North Carolina on its effective use of technology revealed that the state was highly fragmented in the use of and access to technology; the result of this evaluation was the vision of a state-wide network that would link 3,400 sites on a state-of-the-art telecommunications system. Southern Bell created a set of guidelines designed to assure broadcast quality audio and video production and to maintain high standards of construction for North Carolina Information Highway (NCIH) sites. On July 1, 1993, Guilford County Schools (GCS) merged three school systems; it was proposed that by rebuilding the budget inherited from three systems and capitalizing on savings made possible through the merger, GCS could allocate 1.7 million dollars to construct 17 of the 104 technology sites scheduled for the first year. Once constructed, GCS could address the following issues: equity, increased achievement, efficient use of financial resources, enhanced learning opportunities, expanded communication and evaluation. The classroom design for GCS makes the operation of the distance learning lab simple enough to encourage novice users. The use of new technologies in GCS's advanced information infrastructure fuels the creative development of new educational approaches and demonstrates the potential of electronic communication. (AEF)